What are some acceptable formats for business letters?

There are multiple different types of business letter formats, including block and indented formats, as described by The Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. The block format uses a simple layout with "blocks" of text that have no indentation, meaning that all sentences in a paragraph or text block line up evenly on the left and right sides.

By contrast, the indented format for business letters uses indentation of about a half-inch for the first sentence of each paragraph, according to The Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. All other blocks of text, such as the address blocks at the top-left and right sides of the page, use no indentation. Overall, business letter formats are simple, using the same basic structure that includes several short body paragraphs.